‘Game Of Thrones’: George R. R. Martin ‘Wrestling With Decision’ To Write An Episode Next Season

Game of Thrones will premiere its new season next month, and the anticipation is building. Fans are anxious, though, to see how it will compare to previous seasons since George R. R. Martin, who was actively involved in previous seasons, has left the production table to work on the next novel in the series.

Already, though, speculation has turned to the sixth season and the future of the Game of Thrones world — both the HBO series and the A Song of Ice and Fire novel series on which it is based. This week, Martin has addressed many of these questions on his Not A Blog, discussing how many books the series will total, how many seasons of the show HBO will air, and whether he’ll personally write at least one episode for Season 6.

Martin says that in every interview about Game of Thrones, he’s asked some of the same questions, including, “How many seasons do you expect the show to run?”

“My usual answer is a variant on, ‘I don’t know how many seasons the show will run.’

“I don’t know. No one knows.

“This is Hollywood, friends. As William Goldman wrote in ADVENTURES IN THE SCREEN TRADE, in Hollywood ‘nobody knows anything.'”

He says different numbers have been floated: seven seasons, 10 seasons, more. However, at the moment, the contract is for six seasons, and he chooses not to speculate on further seasons.

As for the books, the epic novel series that began with A Game of Thrones has thus far spanned five novels, as well as books of artwork depicting Westeros and side stories. Martin says he still believes the series will be completed in a total of seven novels — the five already published, the one in progress currently, and one more, but that it could still grow. He also says that finishing the main story won’t mean he’s done with Westeros.

“I still hope to finish A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE in seven volumes.

“A good story needs a beginning, a middle, and an end.

“That does not mean I am done with the world, however. Westeros is large, and the world beyond it larger still, and teeming with tales to tell. At the very least, I have more Dunk & Egg stories to write.”

The big question, though, is whether he’ll return to the Game of Thrones production table to create new episodes in Season 6. Unfortunately, Martin doesn’t have an answer yet — but it’s on his mind.

“I am wrestling with that decision right now.”

The Game of Thrones Season 5 premiere will be aired at 9 p.m. EST, simulcast in most viewing areas.